Broomfield Sports

Holy Family's Prieto brothers competing for higher cause

Duo aiming to become first individual champs in history of Tigers program

DRIVEN BY FAMILY, FAITH: Holy Family wrestling twins Julian Prieto, left, and Joseph have turned a deep loss into a special form of motivation. (Jeremy Papasso / Boulder Daily Camera)

Loss is inevitable in sports.

It is how you deal with it that defines you not only as an athlete but as a person.

Joseph and Julian Prieto have lost their fair share of matches on the mat at Holy Family, but those are nothing compared to the loss of their mother and little brother.

"A loss during a match or a football game or at a swimming meet, that is just a game we are playing," said Salvador Prieto, who lost his wife, Christine, and youngest son, Salvador — who went by "Little Sal"— in a car accident on an October day in 2010. "We know the meaning of a true loss."

It was Christine's dream for her boys to not only get a great education, but also do so while maintaining their strong Catholic values. Holy Family was the perfect choice for the family that makes its home in Fort Lupton, and Salvador has driven the boys to school every day since they got to high school.

The Prieto twins are three-sport athletes, having played football for the Tigers in the fall, and they swim for Brighton in the spring, but wrestling is their bread and butter.

"I don't think I have been around two wrestlers that work harder than they do," said Tigers interim coach Bob Wathen, who took over the reins of the team for his friend Joe Domko — who is battling edema, a rare disease that causes fluid to build up under the skin.

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"They are just good kids. Very polite and very dedicated. We couldn't ask for better kids."

Joseph is currently the No. 1 ranked wrestler at 138 pounds in 3A by Tim Yount in his On the Mat rankings. Julian sits at No. 3 at 132 pounds and both would love nothing more than to bring home a title to Holy Family.

Last year was the first time the Tigers, who practice and have the history of the program proudly displayed in the cafeteria/commons of the school, sent a wrestler to the Parade of Champions on the final night of the state wrestling finals. Joseph lost his 126-pound final to Jefferson's Aaron Cisneros by technical fall, but has put the past in the past and is focused on the future.

"I've been wanting to be a state champion since my freshman year and to be the first one at this school would be really cool," Joseph Prieto said. "We did do better than anyone else last year, but to best that and bring home a state championship, that would be even better."

Joseph scored his signature win of the season two weeks ago at Centaurus' prestigious Top of the Rockies tournament. In the third-place match against Class 5A's top-ranked Danny Murphy of Rocky Mountain, Prieto cruised to an 8-3 victory.

Julian, who finished fourth at Top of the Rockies and went into the weekend with a 26-5 record and 20 pins, understands Holy Family isn't necessarily a wrestling school, but is proud of the fact that more and more kids are coming out for the team and hopes to leave a legacy at the school for others to follow.

"We've been improving practices over the years and getting more kids out, but we still go to Mile High wrestling club on Sundays to try and get different workouts in," said Julian, who is the younger of the two twins by a couple of minutes and says a small prayer for his mom and brother before each of his matches.

Wathen, who only can tell the twins apart by the color of their shoes — Julian's are black and Joseph's are blue — has been around the sport for a long time and coached eventual college champions in his time at both Adams City and Standley Lake. He knows that the Prieto brothers have a good chance to make history.

"Skill-wise they are right there with some of those guys, maybe not as good on their feet, but definitely better pinners," he said. "Nobody has had as tough a schedule as we have had, except for maybe Broomfield going back to The Ironman, and hopefully that pays off."

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